In its never-ending battle against the used game market, game companies are always coming up with ways to suck the value out of pre-owned merchandise. Sony has apparently slapped games for its Vita handheld with code that makes them stay loyal to the first account on which they were played, not allowing future owners to unlock virtual trophies. But there’s a way around Sony’s trophy-blocking. [More]
video games
Sony Returns Sales Tax It Mistakenly Charged PS3 Owners
By 2.28.12
Sony sent out emails to customers saying it mistakenly charged sales tax on PlayStation Network purchases back in the day, and has refunded the money into their accounts. [More]
Why Do You Need My Eye Color & Height To Let Me Trade In My Old Copy Of Mass Effect?
By 2.21.12
There’s nothing illegal about re-selling your used video games, but some state and local governments have now begun including your old games on the list of items that require buyers to take down detailed information about you in order to track the purchase. [More]
Make Your PS3 Run Faster By Installing An SSD Hard Drive
By 2.21.12
One of the more attractive features of the PlayStation 3 is that the hardware is designed to allow you to replace the hard drive with inexpensive, high-capacity models that work with laptops. Previously the only reason to upgrade was to get more storage space, but newer solid state disk (SSD) drives reportedly speed up the device. [More]
How To Transfer PSP Games To The Vita
By 2.13.12
Due out Feb. 22, Sony’s PlayStation Vita handheld can’t play physical games from its predecessor, the PSP, because the Vita lacks a disc drive. But many of the PSP’s downloadable games will work on the Vita, and you can transfer them over via a relatively simple — if time-consuming — practice. [More]
Valve Says Hackers Probably Nabbed Transaction Data
By 2.13.12
In November, online game distributor Valve revealed that hackers breached the system. In a recent follow-up statement, Valve CEO Gabe Newell says hackers probably got a hold of transaction data, which includes encrypted credit card info and billing addresses, as well as user names and email addresses. [More]
Star Wars: The Old Republic Crashes Computers Even When It's Not Running
By 2.3.12
If you’ve been thinking about buying a copy of Star Wars: The Old Republic and joining the online multiplayer Jedi awesomeness, it might be a good idea to hold off for a little bit. At least until Bioware works out the current problems. Michael writes that on his wife’s computer-a $4,000 Alienware gaming rig, no puny nettop-the game keeps crashing. Checking online, she found that this is happening to a lot of other people. It’s even happening when the game isn’t running. People having this problem have different video cards and different computers, but what they do have in common is SW:TOR. [More]
New Video Game Is Full Of "Revelaitons"
By 1.27.12
Just about every publisher in the entertainment world sends out advance copies of their products to the media. The goal is to give writers enough time to digest the material and write articles that spread awareness as the product sets to launch, but occasionally early copies serve a second purpose — free copy editing. [More]
Report: Next Xbox Coming In 2013, Will Be 6 Times More Powerful Than 360
By 1.25.12
Microsoft is reportedly prepping its follow-up to the Xbox 360, with plans to start mass-producing the console’s components by the end of the year and release it in October or November of 2013. [More]
Sony, Game Developer Scheme To Plague Gamers With More PS3 Microtransactions
By 1.24.12
Angling to get in on the microtransaction gaming action that’s all the rage online and on mobile devices, Sony and a game developer are reportedly hammering out policies to allow games to nickel and dime players to a greater extent. [More]
Target Doesn't Need To See Your Identification; Tries Anyway
By 1.20.12
Phil (not the one who works here) brought a game/controller bundle to the register at his local Target store. The cashier asked for his driver’s license to complete the sale, because the game was age-restricted. After a manager intervened, Phil got to buy his game with only a typed-in birthdate, but here’s the thing: the game was rated “Teen,” and Target’s own policies state that they don’t require birthdates for games with that rating. And besides: Phil is in his late thirties. [More]
Why You Should Think Twice Before Pre-Ordering Stuff At GameStop
By 1.19.12
New and used game retailer GameStop is well-known for its culture of encouraging pre-sales. Employees convince customers to reserve copies of future products by paying all or part of the balance in advance, pleasing their corporate overlords. Sometimes things don’t go as planned, and in rare cases customers can get stiffed. [More]
Avoid Browser Glitch That Causes Unintentional Xbox Live Purchases
By 1.6.12
If you like to look for free Xbox 360 game demos via Xbox.com on a browser, it’s easy to make a mistake that causes you to accidentally buy the product rather than just test it out. [More]
Sony's Next Handheld Requires Sold-Separately Memory Cards
By 12.23.11
Due out in February, the PlayStation Vita starts at $250, but those who would like to be able to save their games will need a proprietary memory card that isn’t included with the device. Unlike Sony’s last handheld, the PSP — which accepted relatively cheap run-of-the-mill memory sticks, the Vita demands special memory sticks that range from $20 to $100. [More]
Report: Xbox 360 Update Uglies Up Video Playback
By 12.19.11
That Xbox 360 update that makes gamers promise not to sue and reportedly broke some consoles also may have brought another annoyance along with it. Reports say updated machines have trouble properly playing video, making colors appear washed out. [More]
Mandatory Xbox 360 Update Breaks Some Consoles, Microsoft Claims 'Coincidence'
By 12.16.11
Last week’s exciting Kinect Dashboard update for Xbox 360 consoles didn’t just ask users to waive their right to sue and make customers pay to be advertised to. It also appears to have caused problems with a number of consoles. Nothing major: it just keeps them from reading any discs…no, wait, that is major. Microsoft representatives say that this is a coincidence, and that customers with freshly broken consoles need to send them in for repair for $100 or so. [More]
Nintendo 3DS Gets Free WiFi At 42 Airports
By 12.13.11
While people-watching, reading and nervously quadruple-checking your boarding pass are perfectly valid ways to pass the time before your flight boards, they pale in comparison to squeezing in a few online rounds of Mario Kart 7. Thanks to a deal between Nintendo and Boingo, 42 airports now have free 3DS WiFi hotspots. [More]
Microsoft Makes Gamers Promise Never To Sue It After Xbox Update
By 12.8.11
It turns out that shiny new mandatory Xbox 360 update was something of a Trojan Horse that allows Microsoft to twist gamers’ arms and make them agree never to sue the company. [More]
